Soon… so that I can get my herb garden going.
Buying bagged soil is going to cost Tom and I a small fortune.
Over $70 I estimated for just this one box.
And I have several other containers and pots that need to be filled, too.
Even though we spent over $500 to fill our three raised beds with garden soil, this type of soil is just too heavy when growing in pots.
It’s time to make my own potting soil that is both lighter and more airy than garden soil.
Are you in? Want to make your own potting soil and save some serious cash?
Great if you happen to have trash bags filled with rotted leaves that have been decaying for at least two years.
But if you don’t, some substitutions can be made.
A quick example is how anyone can get their hands on some clean sand. Sand works well to increase texture and improve drainage for plants that don’t like to get waterlogged.
Even better is the addition of perlite! Perlite is an ingredient that no good potting soil can live without.
Tom acquired a bag of sawdust from the technology teacher at school, but it’s far from the “rotted” state I need it to be in for my soil mix.
So for now, I’ll have to do the best I can with the best ingredients I can find.
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The problem is that these three ingredients are lacking in nutrients.
Real potting soil, the kind all gardeners made 50 years ago would have included their best garden soil with rotted manure from the barn and leaf mold.
And yet, there’s no perfect formula.
I’ll be adding some manure, humus, sand, wood ash, blood meal, mushroom compost, saw dust and the best leaf mold I can find.
Not completely broken down but it will eventually break down in my planter box.
I can always tweak my soil down the road depending on how my plants do.
Here’s what you need to make your own potting soil:
- Vermiculite (Improves water and nutrient holding, prevents soil compaction, neutral pH)
- Compost (High in organic matter and therefore supports friendly microoganisms)
- Perlite (Improves drainage & aeration)
- Fertilizer
- 5-gallon bucket
- Wheelbarrow to mix in
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Here’s what you might want to add to make your own potting soil:
- Manure & humus (Loaded in nutrients and helps soil retain water)
- Mushroom compost (Improves clay & sandy soil)
- Sand (Lightens soil and improves texture)
- Wood Ash or lime (Helps improve soil structure & root development, high in calcium. Raises soil pH)
- Rotted leaves or rotted sawdust (untreated wood only) if you have any on hand
- Blood meal (for nitrogen)
- Bone meal (for phosphorus)
- Kelp Meal (Chock-full of nutrients)
- Topsoil (why not throw in an extra bag if you have it already lying around?)
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Instructions on how to make your own potting soil:
Not only is it bigger to mix in, but then I can just wheel it around to where I want to spread my dirt.
- Mix one part peat moss, vermiculite and compost. The easiest way is just to grab a bucket and throw one bucket of each part into your mixing container.
- Next, I added a half bucket of perlite. Can you even have enough perlite? Nope. Love this stuff for aeration!
- Add a little water and give it a good stir with a shovel
- Now it’s time to add a scoop of your fertilizer. Obviously chicken poop would be great right now but I don’t have any so I’ll have to settle for some store bought fertilizer.
- And because I’m not a perfectionist, I went ahead and added a scoop of wood ash, blood meal and sand. Then I added 1/2 cup of lime.
- Last, I threw in my manure/humus mixture, the best leaf mold I could scrap up from the garden and some compost, both bagged and natural. I even threw in a handful of sawdust, though not rotted, will break down in the pot. I stumbled across a bag of mushroom compost which I threw in a bucket of as well.
What we paid to make our own potting soil:
And keep in mind, all the ingredients have several uses so what I don’t use now will get repurposed down the road.
Take the sand, for example, what I don’t use goes right into the kids’ turtle sand box.
The bag of lime I bought will be useful for the next couple of years, a little goes a long way.
So the total price here doesn’t exactly reflect what it cost to fill my boxes, in reality, it costs a lot less.
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Ingredient
Peat Moss Vermiculite Compost Perlite Mushroom Compost Blood Meal Lime Play Sand Humus & Manure Wood Ash Saw Dust Leaf Mold |
Quantity
3 cubit feet 8 dry quarts 1 cubit foot 8 quarts 40 pounds 3 pounds 6 pounds .5 cubit foot .75 cubit feet endless supply endless supply endless supply |
Price
$10.97 $4.28 $3.98 $3.82 $3.88 $6.97 $6.48 $2.97 $2.97 free free free |
If I had just bought the bagged soil, I would have spent more and had zero product for future use.
The bottom line? I had to triple my own recipe to fill my box. But I prefer making soil in smaller batches.
After thoroughly mixing my dirt and shifting through it, I was so pleased I decided to make my own.
Both the quantity and quality exceeded my expectations, much better and cheaper than the store bought version.
Wonderful advice and directions
great
Love this site.
Great article
I never have made my own potting soil.Intersting!
Love your tips and tricks
Interesting read
Yes ….VERY interesting. Thank you so much for the tips and tricks😀
Great advice…now where are all those kids to do their share of the work? (non- computer work that is!)
So interesting and an idea I will think seriously about trying next spring.
Amazing Information on DIY Dirt- Make Your Own Potting Soil! Thank You for Sharing!
Great combo! I always have the composting parts- leaf mold and sawdust. People think I am nuts for saving it!
I like the ideas you presented! I feel happy to have options for manure and chicken/guinea poop available at no cost. And, the guidance you give is invaluable! Thank you.
I’ve never made my own potting soil. Thanks for the info!
thanks for the great info
Thanks for the great tips on making my own potting soil.
My father had the best garden when I was young.
Good info… thank you.
Seems like a lot of work, but the results would be nice.
I so love these gardening ideas thank you for all the helpful tips.
Love the articles
This is the first recipe I have ever seen on making your own potting soil. It is very helpful information.
Very insightful thank you for writing such great and informative articles.
I will pass these tips on to a friend who recently ran out and so did the store.
Interesting article. I’m blessed to live in an area with sandy soil!
Even after reading this, I’ll buy potting soil. Sourcing and storing components are tough on a 1/3 acre lot in the burbs. Beginning of the season sales and clearance sales make it dirt cheap and easy.
Thanks for the info!
The soil is the key to growing anything, so thank you for some great tips for creating some awesome soil.
big Tips on that one!
love your blog
I have got to try this! It would be a big boost for my new garden!
It sounds like a great soil mixture to plant with.
Thanks for the great tips!
Love your articles. Always much useful info. Thanks.
I’ll definitely be using these tips the next time I am getting ready to grow my own garden!🌿
Very informative article!
I definitely need to follow the directions for potting soil
Love this idea!!! Wow will be doing this or at least trying
You have the best tips
This will definitely come in handy. I live in the Carolinas where the ground is nothing but hard, red clay. Can’t wait to try all of the new thing I have been learning from your articles.
Great tips thank you
I will definitely put this to use and make my own potting soil.
very informative thanks for all the information
Great for the people who like to garden
I’ve never tried making my own soil, but will now! Soil is so pricey and I can never seem to find the type I’m looking for.
I must confess – I will continue buying bagged potting soil.
I am going to bookmark these tips. because I know nothing and need all the help I can get so thanks for the tips
Awesome!! Thank you! 🙂
A great outdoor project.
Thank you for sharing so much great advice. Will share with Hubs as he plans his garden for late next spring!
No, never made my own potting soil, but thank you for the great info. With the purchase of my new home I now have a huge garden spot, so I will be putting out a huge garden this year.
Super helpful info! I’ve made my own potting soil for years and it really does make a difference!
Thanks for the info I will use this .
Hmmmmm. Very informative. I will share this. Especially with my husband.
Good reading
My husband taught Horticulture so we know all about this!
Thank You for the awesome tips and I will definitely be buying this potting soil for my garden
I’m an avid gardener and have been buying my potting soil for years. Not anymore. Thanks for the great tips!
Great tips! I am so bad when it comes to figuring out or adding the proper nutrients and things to soil. But this will help me a lot.
always need good soil
Never made my own, interesting
This is excellent! Thank you!
i also have large raised beds that I plan on replacing soil next season. thanks for the article.
Love all your tips and tricks!
Thanks for the info.
thank you
I love gardening so much!!
Wonderful information. Would love to try making my own potting soil
I have made potting soil beforte, but it was certainly not with this precision or thought. Thank you for the info.
I’ve never made my own potting soil but it sounds like it would work great and it’s nice knowing what’s in it.
More excellent gardening tips! Thanks!
Learned something today!
I have never made my own potting soil.I congratulate you on all your hard work and recycling natural ingredients.
I think buying may be easier but good to know!!
This is great. I do not like paying for soil and it not be enough to grow good vegetables.
Gardening is really relaxing. Love it.
this is great ingo! i didnt know much about potting soil!
That’s amazing!!
Great article thanks
Very informative.
On top of other expenses having a garden cutting back on soil would be a big savings. I am going to make planter boxes over the winter to occupy some time while we aren’t suppose to be out and about due to the pandemic. Hopefully I can come up with all the ingredients to make my own soil. What a big savings that will be.
Awesome info thanks
Never knew the were so many different types of soil.
I must come to this site more often for tips on growing from planters.
Great information. I’ll keep all of this in mind for the future. I never thought of making this on my own.
Excellent article!
Thank you for the information!
I love the idea of making my own potting soil, when spring comes I want to try this!
That is interesting. Have always purchased at HD or Lowe’s.
Got to try it next year
Thanks for all the great information!
Thank you for the info. I have plans for my gardens now.
What a great idea. I never really considered making my own.
So needed this
Yes, we have and we even add gypsum because we used to have very heavy hard clay. Compost and rotting leaves have turned it into beautiful loam. Thank you for the ideas.
We are movng and I will need this come spring.
Such great ideas… thank you
Thanks for the great information. I will bookmark this article.
thanks for the wonderful info!
I worked at a greenhouse years ago that made their own. Yes you can save lots of money doing your own.
A lot to learn but great information.
What a clever idea to save money!
My parents need to know this.
Thank you for the great advice!
Thanks for the info.
I didn’t realize there was a way to make a lighter potting soil. This is very helpful.
I would have loved to have read this article when I was having problems growing in clay. So helpful!
This is all great to know.
Love the tips!
My mom is dropping everything in my drive way to make soil .Christmas Cactus soil and Orchid too its what i wanted for Christmas to pot up my plant starts. Great information here which i will share in making your own..
Very interesting! I would have never thought of this in a million years!
I have never made my own soil, in fact I have never even considered it. You always have so much great information and make me a better gardener.
Spring can’t some soon enough and can then try this out!
These are great ideas and if we get moved can use
Great idea, thank you!! I love the idea of making my own soil. Have to try it in the Spring.
May have to try this. I have had horrible problems with grass growing too. So will try anything for the garden now.
I’ve never made my own potting soil but I usually have a need for a small amount.
Saving this too, so we can be ready next year!